Telegraphone.



F. SEELAU.

TELEGRAPHONE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 2a, 19m.

4 SHEETS-SHEET l.

Patented Jan. 18, 1916.

MMA

nlln'l. M

'lill l' F. SEELAU.

I TELEGRAPHONE.

y APPLICATION -FILED MAY 28, I9I4. 1,168,432. Patented 18111.18, 1916. 4 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

IIIIIIIII F. SEELAU.

TELEGRAPHONE.

APPLICATION msn MAY 2a, |914.

1,168,432. ,Patented Jan.18,1916.

4 SHEETS-SHEEI 3.-

Witnesses l l Inl/enfer hM/M 6 km F. SEELAU. TELEGRAPHONE.

APPL/lcATloN FILED MAY 28, |914. 1,168,432.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

vPatented Jan. 18, 1916.

FRANZ -SEELAU, 0F BERLIN-WILMERSDORF, GERMANY, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO ALEXANDER M. NEWMAN, 0F IBERLIN-WANNSEE, GERMANY.

TELEGRAPHONE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented J an. 18, 1916.

Application filed May 28, 1914. Serial No. 841,408.

To all whom t may concern Be it known that I, FRANZ SEELAU, a subject of the German Emperor, residing at Berlin-VVilmersdorf, Kingdom of Prussia, Germany, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Telegraphones, of which the following is a specification.

The present invention relates to a device for phonographically recording conversations transmitted by telephone. Such device is generally called a telegraphone. This is a device, which is intended to be connected to a telephone line and which will be set in operation when a call arrives over the telephone line. 1n such case a socalled responding device informs the calling party that the called subscriber is absent, but that his message will be recorded by the device. Thereupon the responding device is put out of operation and the recording device is started Vwhereupon the message of the caller is recorded on a phonographic roll.

The present invention consists in various combinations and designs, by which the said device is improved and its opera-tion is considerably simplified. A considerable improvement resides therein that after the answer has been given 4to the caller the switching for the recording operation is performed quite automatically and without any aid of the caller, the responding device being, at the same time, automatically put out of operation. A further improvement consists in that the sound boxes,- of which the one serves for responding, the other for recording, are readily interchangeable, so as to allow of listening to the message recorded or of recording any desired answer on the responding roll.

All novel features are disclosed in the following specification and description of the device and are specied in the claims., Reference is therewith had to the accompanying drawings.

In these drawings Figure 1 is a front elevation of the whole device. Fig. A2 is a side elevation. Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the responding sound boX, apart of the wall being removed to show the interior. Fig. 5 is a rear view of the same. Fig. 4 is the recording sound box, partly in elevation, partly in inside view. Fig. 6 is a diagrammatical illustration of the device with thel phone.

required circuits. Figs. 7-14 show details, the object of which will be evident from the specification.

From Figs. 1 and 2 it will be seen that the device is mounted on a box base 4 in which the mechanical driving device, e. g. an electric motor 24, may be placed. This motor is coupled by the aid of a two-positioncoupling 26 to one of the driving pulleys 5a or 5b and thus sets the cylinder drum z' or o in motion. The boX base 4 furthermore contains various electromagnets required for the operation of the device of which magnets, for the sake of greater clearness only one magnet 21 is indicated. On the top plate 10 in Fig. 1, the responding device A is shown on the left and the recorder B on the right. A phonographic cylinder a of the responding device may be fitted on to the drum o while the drum i carries the cylinder record d of the recording device. The other-parts of the responding device aremounted near the responding cylinder a, and comprise a slide or carriage g supporting the responding sound box b, which consists principally of a phonograph sound box combined with a micro- The carriage g is shifted in the manner usual in phonographs by a feednut f which engages vwith a screw spindle. The mechanism is more fully shown in Figs. 11 to 14 and consists of a sleeve which is slidably fitted on a tube 11. In this tube is provided a screw spindle 12 having a fine thread, which screw spindle is turned by means of the toothed wheel 13. The tube 11 which is secured with its one end in the bracket 14, and with its other end at 15 in the wall 16, Fig. 1, has on its undersideI a longitudinal slot 17 through which a nutlike member f secured to the slide g projects. When this nut-member engages with the screw spindle 12, the slide will by means of the revolving spindle 12 be gradually displaced to the right, so that the needle of a sound box placed on the slide will follow the ne record grooves on the record roll o. The nut-member f is secured by means of a spring 18 to the slide g so that it will be pressed into the thread of the screw spindle 12 when its nose 19 engages in a notch 34 in a ring 35, which is tted concentrically to the slide sleeve g in such a manner, that it can be turned relatively thereto. The one edge of the notch 34 is slightly beveled, so

` brackets 38, each of which carries a pan for a knife edge, on which the sound box b is supported. The brackets 38are secured to the sliding sleeve g'by interposed insulating pieces, so that there is no electrically conductive connection vbetween the brackets 38 and-the bearing pan 39 with the sleeve 'g or any other metallic parts.

The shaft 40 of the drum o, which is posed parallel to the guide of the slide g carries the pulley 5b over whichruns a belt 5 which leads to the reversible .coupling 26.

The shaft 40 drives bymeans of a toothed wheel 41 on wheel 15 of the screw spindle 12 so that,` whensthe pulley 5h is driven,

A both lthe drum o and the screw spindle 12 will be rotated, whereby, by the coaction of the screw spindle 12 and of the nut-member f the slide g will be slowlyv advanced to the right. During its travel the slide carries with it a socalled torque lever h which engages with its fork 43 over apin,44 in slide g. The torque lever h which is shown separate in Figs. 9 and 10, is pivoted at 42 in the bracket of the slide. On a bearing pin 45 is fitted a sleeve 46 which is attached to the lever z.. On sleeve 46 is itted a spiral spring 47 which is secured at its' inner end to the sleeve 46, and at its outer endto the wall of its casing 48. When lever. 44 is moved to the right by 4the travel of the slide g, the spring 47 will be tightened. When then the coupling of the nut-member f with the screw-spindle 12 is disengaged, the slide will, in consequence of the spring action 47 and by coaction of lever h and pin A44 be again returned to-the left into its initial position. The turning of ring 35 in order to engage or disengage, respectively,

' the nut f with or from the screw spindle 12 is'e'ected by a shoulder 49 engaging in the fork 50 of an intermediate lever c, which' is list operated by means of an electric magnet in the manner hereinafter described.

The hereinbeforementioned reversiblecouplingv 26 can, in its second position, couple the driving motor 8 with a belt pulley 5a which drives the drum i of the recorder B. The recorder B consists, A-the same as -the responder A of a drum z', on which a phonograph record roll d is placed,

and a slide or carriage g as carrier for the sound box. This carriage g 1s essentially.,

dis-. 1

of the same constructionas slide or carriage g of the responder A and also its guide and the mechanism for moving it sidewise is the same; only here the electromagnetic disv the' recorder B, together with its sound box e toits initial position on the left the shoulder 49 of ring 35 is here displaced by hand for disengaging the feed nut f. The lower guide rod s which corresponds to the guide rod 37 of the responder, is provided with a scale, in order to allow of measuring the length of the message recorded on the roll-CZ, and furthermore serves asa slip contact for the hereinafter described'terminal for oonducting thecurrent to the telephone part, of the sound box e.

The sound box b of the responder A and the sound boX 'e of thev recorder B are, es-

other words, the diaphragm of the receiver box is directly vcoupled to a phonograph stile. Thus both-sound boxes b and e consist, as evident from Figs. 3 and 4, of a casing 1', into whicha transmitter system or a receiver system, respectively, is fitted, the diaphragm g and 71., respectively is connected to a phonograph stile Z and m, respectively.

In 'the responding box -b (Fig. 3) a carbon contact fw is arranged at a givendistance from the diaphragm g. The space between this stationary contact and the diaphragm, which is closed at the sides by a ring of any suitable'insulating material, is filled with carbon granules z. The phonograph stile or needle Z attached to the diaphragm g is made of such a shape, that it' can follow 4the line record waves or grooves in a phonograph record roll, without injurp ing such record. For carrying this sound box b on its carriage g a piece of insulating material 'v1' is attached to casing r, to which knife-edge projections in are litted on -either side of the sound' box. The one of these projections is conductively connected with the carbon contact fw, the other with the diaabove mentioned pans 39 on carriage g.- The electric connection between the m1cr0- phragrn g. These knife-edges p lit into the A phone and the telegraphone is, therefore, solely effected by the sound box b being fitted with its projections p into the pans 39 on carriage g, from which pans the current is conducted further without any other vconnections having to be made. In order to allow of a lateral movement of the sound box b, the casing 1' may be pivotally fitted to the insulating part 'v1 by means of short pins 9, as shown in Fig. 5, being a rear view 0I Fig. 3.

In the casing 1' of the recorder box e (Fig. 4) a magnet system 6 is tted in the usual manner, on the pole shoes of which magnet coils 7 are arranged. This magnet system is disposed in such a manner, that the pole shoes are behind the diaphragm n. This diaphragm n is, likewise, fitted with a phonograph stile m but this stile is of such a shape, that it can engrave record waves into the phonograph roll. This sound box e is likewise supported by means of knifeedges p fitted with insulating parts lv2 to the casing 1'; also here the knife edges p serve for closing the electric connection with the coils 7 of the telephone system, when the sound box e is placed in the manner described with sound box b into its carriage g. The regulating weight indicated at u has the object of regulating the pressure with which the recording stile m bears on the roll cl, so as to secure the proper engraved depth of the record grooves.

The switching arrangements required for the automatic operation of the whole apparatus `are marked in Fig. 1 with lc, at the responder A for switching from responding to recording, and with 7:2 at the recorder B forv incidentally switching the record onto a further roll.

The arrangementl of these switches is shown in side elevation in Fig. 7, and in front elevation in Fig. 8. Into aring 51, made of metal, is fitted a body 52 of insulating material, to the front surface of which three contact springs l, 2, 3 of a sickle shape are attached. In Fig. 7 the insulating body 52 has been drawn out from the ring 51, in order to show the contact springs. In its position of rest the contact spring 1 touches the contact spring 2. For switching the contact spring 1 from 2 to 3, the contact spring 1 is provided with a nose 53 of insulating material. The so constructed switch is, is fitted with its bore 54` in such a manner on tube 11, that the carriage g can abut with its right face 'g1 against the nose 53 of `contact spring 1, when the` carriage travels to the right, and ,the answer recorded on roll a has been completely delivered. The switch 7c, is displaceable on tube 11, so as to allow of its being set in such a manner as may be required by the length of the message recorded on the roll a of the responder A. The switch In,

spring 56 against tube l1.

position, that the front face g1 is fixed by a lever 55, which is pressed by a When lever 55 1s pressed downward, the whole switch la, may be leasily displaced on tube 11. The switch la, on the recorder B has been similarly constructed, only here no adjustability is required. lThe switch lo, is placed in such of carriage g of the recorder B abuts against the nose 53, when the roll d has been completely covered with record grooves.

In explanation of the diagram, Fig. 6, the following may be said The driving motor 24 drives a countershaft 25, from which by means of the reversible coupling26 either the pulley 5b or 5a is driven. The coupling 26 is reversed by the electric magnets 28 or 31 acting on aV lever 8. When the electric magnet 28 is excited, the coupling is engaged on the left, so that the driving motor 24 drives the belt pulley 5b and the roll a, to-

gether with the carriage g of the responder A. When, on the other hand, the electric magnet 31 is excited, the coupling 26 is engaged on the right whereupon the roll al with the respective carriage of the recorder B is driven by the motor 24 and the belt drive 5a.

2O are conducto-rs which lead to the substation of the calling'subscriber. They proceed from the electric magnet 21, which effects the switching of the whole arrangement; through contact 22, which is closed by the armature 23 of this magnet 21, the driving 'motor 24 is started. From conductor 20 is branched off a conductor 27 which leads to the middle spring 1 of switch k1. This switch la, is, as hereinbefore said, in the path of the carriage of the responder A, has, however, for allowing of a greater simplicity, been indicated in Fig. 6 at another place. Spring 2 of the switch la, is connected to the winding of the electric magnet 28, from the other side of which the conductor 29 leads to the microphone of the responder sound box b, the passage of the current being enabled in the manner described by the bearings of the sound box Z). The circuit for the responder box Z) is completed by the conductor 29 being connected to the second wire of the conductor 20. From spring 3 of switch 7c, a conductor 30 leads tothe electric magnet 31, which on the other side ris connected to spring 1 of the switch 762. This switch c, is fitted in the .manner described in the path of the carover the feed-nut f with the spindle 12 3 of switch k1,

box in the same manner as described, when a second record roll with a corresponding sound box is provided for recording long messages. The shaft and guide spindle of this second record roll and sound box are rotated by a drive which is a substantial duplicate of that described with relation to recorder B, so that a detailed drawing and description is deemed superfluous. The armature 23 of magnet 21 of the responder A is coupled to the aforementioned lever c, so that, when magnet 21 is excited, the lever c vwill ,effect the engagement of the feed-nut f into the feed screw 12 so as to produce in the responder A the travel of carriage g of the responder box b. As soon as the magnet 21 is dead, the lever 0 moves down `and thereby the engagement of the feed-nut f is disconnected, whereupon ythe carriage is returned into its initial position by the spring action of the torque lever h, in the manner described.

For leading olf the talking currents from the windings of magnets 28 and 31, which generally show self-induction, they are bridged by condensers 32.

The operation of the arrangement is as follows When a subscriber, who is connected to the conductor 20, wishes to communicate with the telegraphone, he gives the call signal in the-usual manner, by switching on his telephone and sending a current intoo the conductor 20. Thereby the magnet 21 is excited and attracts its armature 23. The Contact 22'is closed and the motor 24 is started. .At the same time the coupling of the carriage g of the responder A engaglps Y the armature 23 reversing the lever c. As also the magnet 28 is excited via the conductors indicated by arrows in Fig. 6, it will, throw the coupling 26 to the left,where upon the motor 24 drives the responder A. The microphone of the responder box b likewise receives current for its excitation via the conductor 27, springs 1, 2 from switch icl, magnet 28, conductors 29 and 29. This isillustrated in Fig. 6. Now the answer is given, by sponder roll a being delivered by the sound box b: for example: Mn N. is not in, but your message will be recorded by the telegraphone. After the message has been completely delivered, the edge g1 of carriage 9 has reached the switch lc1 and the spring 1 is'reversed. Thereby the'magnet 28 and the sound box b become dead, and the magnet 31 is engaged. The latter when excited throws the coupling 26 to the right, so that now the recorder B is driven by the motor 24. The record is now made, by the talking currents coming from the calling subscriber proceeding over conductor 27, springs 1 and conductor 30, condenser 32, springs 1 and 2 of switch cz to the telephone the answer `recorded on the re-v of the recorder box e and flowing through the windings of the pole pieces 7, Fig. 4. Thereby the diaphragm 'n is vibrated, and these vibrations are directly transmitted to the recording stile m and thereby engraved into the wax roll. beneath it. When the record has'filled this roll, the switch-k2 is reversed in the same manner as described with.

reference to switch lo, by the carriage abut- 21 interrupts at the contact 22 the driving current for the motor 24. At the same time it reverses the lever c, whereupon the feed-l nut f disengages the carriage, so that the carriage g will be returned by the spring action of lever h. Also the magnet '31 is dewhereby the current flowing through energized,whereby the coupling 26 is also'reversed. The recording box e, however, remains in its position in which the record was completed, so that when the next message arrives, after the response has been given to the next callin the manner described, the record will be continued from this part of the record roll d.

For listening to the message which has been recorded on the roll d, the sound box e of the recorder B must be removed from its Vcarriage and the sound box b of the responder A be set to the beginning of rolld, and the receiver and transmitter hand combination or telephone t must be switched to the conductor 20, for which purposea doublethrow switch may be provided. As the knifeedge bearings p ofthe sound boxes are at the same time current contacts for the receiver and the transmitter system, no other connections are required after their exchange. When now the transmitter of t is switched on the apparatus will be startedin the same manner as described when the other subscriber called. After the switch c1 has been thrown over, the roll d commences to revolve and delivers the message through the microphone switched on from b into the telephone of the hand apparatus t.

For producing a record on a responder roll a, the recording box e is substituted for the box b over roll a, and the answer is then spoken into the microphone of the apparatus t. When the message, which is to serve as response, is completed the switch 7:1 is moved up close to the carriage g and fixed in such position by lever 55. By such adjustment it. is obtained. that immediately after the re- I, scribed.

[lso

It is obvious that details of the designs and arrangements of the various parts of the device may be modified without departing from the principle lof the invention. So,

for example, the roll drums may be driven by gear wheels in place of belts.'

1. A device for recording messages transmitted by telephone comprising a responding roll with response impressions imprinted thereon, a responding sound box coacting with the response impressions on said responding roll, recording rolls, a recording sound box for making message impressions yon each sa1d recording roll, a calling tele-l phone line, a connection between the responding sound box and the calling telephone line, switching devices controlled by the responding sound box and the recording sound box, means actuated by the switching device for starting the operation of a recording roll immediately the responding' sound box reaches the end of the response impressions and for connecting the calling telephone line to a recording sound box, and means for starting the operation of another recording roll and its coacting recording sound box immediately the one recording roll is covered with sound impressions.

2. A device for recording messages transmitted by telephone comprising a responding roll with response impressions imprinted thereon, a responding sound box coacting with the impressions on said responding roll, recording rolls, a recording sound box for making message impressions on each said recording roll, a calling telephone line, a connection between the responding sound box and the calling telephone line, a switching device controlled by the responding sound-box'and adjustably mounted so that it may be fixed at different points of recording cylinder according to the length of the response impressions, means actuated by the adjustable switching device for starting the operationof a recording roll immediately the responding sound box reaches the end of the'response impressions and for connecting thecalling telephone line tothe recording sound box.

3, A device for recording messages transmitted by telephone comprising aresponding roll with response impressionsimprinted thereon, a responding sound box c oacting with the impressions on the said responding roll, a feed wdevice for moving saidv responding sound'box," recording rolls, a recording sound box for making message impressions on each'said recording roll, a calling telephone line, a connection between the responding sound box and the 'calling telephone line, 'a switching device controlled by the responding sound box and the recording sound box, starting means actuated by the.

` switching device for starting the operation of the recording roll immediately the responding sound box reaches the end of the responding impressions and for connecting the calling telephone line to the recording sound box, a feed device for moving the recording sound box along the recording roll While a message is being delivered through the calling line, means for restoring the response sound box to its initial position at the end of a message while leaving the recording sound box in its advanced position where it starts a new record on the transmission of the next message. 1

4. A device for recording messages transmitted by telephone comprising a. responding roll with response impressions imprinted thereon, a responding sound box coacting with the impressions on the said responding roll, a recording roll, a recording sound box for making message impressions on said recording roll, a mounting for said recording sound box, a calling telephone line, a connection between the responding sound -box and the calling telephone line, a

switching device controlled by the responding sound box and the recording sound box, means actuated by the switching device for starting the operation off-the recording roll, f

immediately the responding sound box reaches the end of the response impressions and for connecting the calling telephone line to the recording sound box, a listening telephone and means for connecting 'the listenng telephone to the said responding sound 5. A device for recording messages transmitted by telephone comprising a responding roll with response impressions imprinted thereon, a responding sound box having a diaphragm acting directly on microphonic contacts and bearing a phonographic stile that coacts with the impressions on'the said responding roll, a recording roll, a recording sound box forv making message impressions on sald recordmg roll, a callingtelephone line, a connection between the re- -sponding sound box and the calling telephone line. a'switching device controlled by the responding sound box and the recording 'sound box,means actuated by the switching device for starting the operation ofa recording' roll immediately the responding sound box reaches the end of the response impressions and for connecting the calling telephone line to the recording sound box; v v

6. A device for recording messages transmitted by telephone comprising. a respond- .ing roll'with response impressions imprinted thereon, a responding sound boxfcoacting with the impressions on said responding roll, an electromagnetic telephone receiver, a

recording roll, a recording sound box havl as.

- the operation of a recording roll immediately the responding sound box reaches the end of the response impressions and for connecting the calling telephone line to the recording sound box.y

7 A device for recording messages transmitted by telephone comprising a responding roll with response impressions imprinted thereon, a responding sound box Vcomprising a microphone and a stile coacting withV the impressions on the said responding roll, a -recording roll, a recording sound box for making message impressions on said recording roll, a mounting for the said responding sound box comprising a plurality of supporting electricity conducting surfaces, an insulating piece on the responding sound box, two metallic knife edge supports attached to the insulating piece and arranged so as to contact with said supporting surfaces,l electrical connections between the knife edge supports and the microphone, a calling telephone line, a connection lbetween thev said supporting surfaces and the calling telephone line, a switching device controlled by the responding sound box and the recording sound box, means cactuated. by the switching device for starting the operation of a recording roll immediately the responding sound box reaches the end of the response impressions and for connecting the lralling telephone line to the recording sound 8. A device for recording messages transmitted by telephone comprising a responding roll with response impressions imprintedthereon, a responding sound box coacting with the impressions on said responding roll, a recording roll, a recording sound box comprising a telephonic receiverand a stile for making message impressions on said recordinggroll, a mounting for the said recording sound box consisting of a plurality of insulated electricity conducting supporting surfaces, a calling telephone line, an insulating piece on the said recording soundbox, two metallicr knife edge supports attached to the insulating piece, each knife edge support resting on a supporting surface, electri# cal connections with the supporting surfaces that extend toward the calling telephone line, electrical connections between the knife edge supports and the telephone receiver, a connection between the responding sound box and the calling telephone line, a switching device controlled by the responding sound box and the recording sound box, means actuated by the switching device for starting the operation of the recording roll immediately the responding sound box has reached the end of the response impressions and for completing the said electrical connections with the calling telephone line to the recording sound box while disconnecting the responding sound box.'-

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

Finanz sEELA'U.

Witnesses WOLDEMAR HAUPT, HENRY HASPER. 

